Vacation Bible School 2018

We understand Vacation Bible School is a major event in your church and that it is one of the greatest opportunities for outreach for all people, especially children and preschools. Even in our high tech environment, VBS continues to be one of the most fruitful special events in terms of both finding prospects and leading them to the Lord. We are here to help as you plan VBS 2018 in your church!

Join Daniel—torn from his home and forced into the king's service. Explore exotic sights and smells in a Babylonian bazaar! Kids and adults will find that they're not much different from Daniel and his friends, who kept their faith in a faithless culture. Your Babylon Starter Kit is packed with everything you need to get your Holy Land Adventure VBS started!

Invite children on a white-water rafting adventure to experience the ride of a lifetime with God! Along the river, children discover that life with God is an adventure full of wonder and surprise, and that they can trust God to be with them through anything.

The perfect VBS for churches that celebrate African American history and culture! Lessons are based on stories Jesus told of how God provides every hour of every day so we might have life and live it to the fullest!

Strap on your life jacket and get ready for a rip-roaring river ride with Splash Canyon: God's Promise on Life's Wild Ride. The all-inclusive Splash Canyon Starter Kit includes materials for 6 rotational sites, sample crafts, keepsakes, and other student essentials. It also includes music videos and scores, lesson and decorating posters, decorating tutorials, volunteer training materials, and access to the VBSMate online registration tool.

Does the responsibility for organizing your church's summer Vacation Bible School program fall on your shoulders? If this is your first year of and you have no idea where to begin, or maybe you have lots of experience and look forward to checking out the new 2018 VBS programs – we've got what you're looking for with information and samples for each 2018 VBS Program, along with an online Easy Order Form of all products for each 2018 VBS Program and a general planning overview.

Compare the various programs by looking at samples, videos and other information in our 2018 VBS Program Overview here. Program Overview

Use the "Easy Order Form" links above to access our VBS Program product lists for Easy Ordering. Access our general overview we put together to help you create an outline for your planning schedule this year. General Planning Overview

2018 VBS Program Overviews

The Bible school publishers have released their new VBS curriculum and we'd like to help you choose the best VBS for your needs. Beyond all the information offered here on our website, we would be glad to assist you personally with any additional questions you may have. Call or visit us in store today!

We offer all the new 2018 VBS programs from...

Shipwrecked

By: Group Publishing

Venture onto an uncharted island where kids survive and thrive. Anchor kids in the truth that Jesus carries them through life's storms.

Missions and MoreYour ultimate starter kit also includes a missions project sampler plus information on lots of other one-of-a-kind VBS resources.

Shipwrecked CatalogPacked with tons of resources to help you make Shipwrecked an easy-to-plan and unforgettable VBS event.

Babylon

By: Group Publishing

Join Daniel—torn from his home and forced into the king's service. Explore exotic sights and smells in a Babylonian bazaar! Kids and adults will find that they're not much different from Daniel and his friends, who kept their faith in a faithless culture. Your Babylon Starter Kit is packed with everything you need to get your Holy Land Adventure VBS started!

Missions and MoreYour ultimate starter kit also includes a missions project sampler plus information on lots of other awesome VBS resources.

Babylon CatalogPacked with tons of resources to help you make Babylon an easy-to-plan, Bible-rich, unforgettable VBS event.

Polar Blast Weekend

By: Group Publishing

Sled into an ice way to spend the ultimate summer weekend. At Polar Blast kids chill with new friends and warm up to Jesus—the coolest friend of all.

Group's Weekend VBS is just two 2 ½ hour sessions plus a 20 minute celebration on Sunday, so it's easy for your volunteers and your families. It's perfect for churches that are small, haven't done VBS, are considering skipping VBS...or even those that just can't get enough VBS!

Rolling River Rampage

By: Cokesbury

Invite children on a white-water rafting adventure to experience the ride of a lifetime with God! Along the river, children discover that life with God is an adventure full of wonder and surprise, and that they can trust God to be with them through anything.

Hero Central

By: Cokesbury

Take kids on awesome adventures alongside some of their favorite Bible heroes and discover the qualities that make us truly heroic in God. VBS Hero Central uses epic music, spectacular science, crafty crafts, heroic recreation, and fantastic Bible stories to help kids (and leaders) discover their strength in God!

24/7 Jesus Makes A Way Every Day

By: Abingdon Press

The perfect VBS for churches that celebrate African American history and culture! Lessons are based on stories Jesus told of how God provides every hour of every day so we might have life and live it to the fullest! Children, youth, and adults will have fun discovering that abundant life is based on a strong faith foundation, sharing in community, seeking justice, persistent prayer, and the forgiveness and love of Jesus Christ. Participants will: Hear that God's Word provides a firm foundation for everyday life; Experience God's abundant life through community sharing and fun; Be introduced to people who inspire abundant living!

Memory Verse: "Forgive us for the ways we have wronged you, just as we also forgive those who have wronged us." (Matthew 6:12)

Every Day Say: Forgiveness is a sign of love!

Splash Canyon

By: Concordia Publishing House

Strap on your life jacket and get ready for a rip-roaring river ride with Splash Canyon: God's Promise on Life's Wild Ride. The all-inclusive Splash Canyon Starter Kit includes materials for 6 rotational sites, sample crafts, keepsakes, and other student essentials. It also includes music videos and scores, lesson and decorating posters, decorating tutorials, volunteer training materials, and access to the VBSMate online registration tool.

If this is your first year coordinating your Vacation Bible School Program, CONGRATULATIONS! You've got many of tasks ahead of you but the reward at the end will be more than worth it.

We have put together a general overview to help you create an outline for your planning schedule this year. Remember that you were specially chosen to play this role and we know you can do it!

VBS Planning Outline & Timeline

6-9 Months before your VBS is the time to start putting Vacation Bible School on your radar. You will want to establish the foundations of your program. Also consider including Preschoolers (2-5 year olds) in your VBS. You may want to run a separate preschool program for your little ones (same hours). The preschoolers can join the other children for your opening and then the younger children can have their own learning centers, games and age-appropriate crafts for the rest of the morning.

Begin praying for your VBS program. You may want to organize a prayer team.

Choose your dates and time for you VBS. Put them on the church calendar early.

Choose a VBS Director.

Choose a VBS Theme and Purchase your VBS Starter kit so you can begin planning.

Several Months (3-6) before your VBS get your VBS leadership team together to estimate your attendance and set dates for the program. Go ahead and publicize the dates to your congregation and to our bookstore so you can get plenty of volunteers and find out how to get the word out in the community. At this point start looking at what materials you will need for your VBS program and order your VBS materials before they are sold out, they do go quickly. Having your team brainstorm together now helps you understand which things that will need longer preparation time, put together and distribute teacher materials and begin compiling registration lists.

Set a budget for your VBS program

Recruit key leaders – Music, Snacks, Games, Bible story teacher.

Plan publicity for your VBS – community outreach could include signage, door to door flyers, radio spots.

Put together a list of supplies you'll need.

Order all of your publicity, decorating, leaders manuals and teaching supplies.

Setting Goals: Staff should give thought to establishing the goals of the VBS program:

What objectives should be met for the program to be considered successful?

Who do you expect to participate — children at what ages; youth; family units?

Is God calling you to reach out in new ways to a new segment of the community?

Are you planning a week to enrich the church children's understanding of the Bible? Or is it to reach out to new people in and fun and inspiring way?

Is the program to be an outreach to the community?

A couple of months (2-3) before your VBS you will want to start distributing registration forms, create daily schedules for VBS Week, start your publicity to the congregation and community, fill all the teaching staff positions and start training your team! Make sure you have the contact information – phone numbers, email addresses and names – of the people that will be teaching and anyone who volunteers to create things.

Plan and schedule a VBS staff training meeting to be held 4-6 weeks prior to VBS.

Begin recruiting additional leaders and support staff.

Explore your church facilities to determine what areas you will need.

Estimate your VBS enrollment. Use figures from Sunday school or last year’s VBS.

Order student supplies if you have not already done so.

As you Recruit, look for leaders and teachers with the following qualifications:

Dedicated Christians who seek to live for Christ daily, who study God's word, and who know the plan of salvation – suitable role models for children

People tuned in to kids, able to build upon their natural interests and who will enjoy sharing in the children's joy of discovery

Warm, outgoing, having a genuine love and sensitivity for children, understanding them in terms of their physical, mental, and emotional development, and their spiritual needs

One who will appreciate and seek to follow God's command to teach children, demonstrating this by being reliable and disciplined to prepare for each day of VBS

About a month (4-6 weeks) before your VBS continue to maintain your list of registered students and stay alert to any staffing adjustments needed as you finish up the details of the schedule for your VBS Week. Follow-up with any items you have outstanding and touch base with your VBS teachers to make sure they have what they need for that week.

Begin pre-registration.

Hold the scheduled VBS staff training meeting.

Meet with key leaders.

Check your registration weekly and order any extra supplies you may need. Remember these item sell out fast.

One week before VBS will begin your final setup up before the big event – decorations, registration tables, signs, sorting craft and game supplies to the right rooms. Now you should run a check of student count versus your materials. Remember you will have last minute people show up. Provide teachers with current information about their classes including rosters and prepare any packets you will provide to the parents. Assign a place and time for all VBS staff to meet prior to each session for prayer.

The Day before your VBS begins run a final check of supplies (are the pencils sharpened?) and rooms. Then take a breath and start praying for all the kids, families and volunteers that will be involved with your VBS this week.

First Day of VBS make sure you arrive early — take time for more prayer with your teams and even in the stress remember to celebrate the opportunities to witness. Especially early in the week, watch for rough spots needing adjustment the next day and after the children leave, brief staff meeting to catch loose ends. And don't forget to take lots of pictures! Each day, continue to pray for God to move in the hearts of your children. Things that should be modified for next year, make note of in a place you will remember to pass it on the next year. And remember to have fun!

After you wrap up Evaluation: It's a good idea to collect evaluations and suggestions from the staff for future kids events at the church. Before your VBS ends, Have thank you notes and evaluation forms ready for your helpers. Make sure you display photographs for congregation and get a list to the Kids Church teachers, especially for families that came and are not already affiliated with the church so they can remember them when they show up for regular services. Be sure to let your volunteers know how much they helped to make VBS 2018 the best ever. While they're still excited about the great things that happened during VBS, ask if they would be willing to consider being a part of the team next year. (Just to get an idea, not for a firm commitment.) Then follow up just as soon as you set the next date to have them start praying about volunteering for your next VBS program.

If you need help, we have a great staff ready to serve you both online and in the store. You can find other supplies, like prices for games or attendance and Bibles for new believers in our stores as well.